1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable terminal, and more particularly to a pop-up type portable terminal including a pair of housings, which are slidably coupled with each other in such a manner that one housing can be slidably accommodated in or withdrawn from the other housing.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, portable terminals are electronic appliances for providing wireless communication between users and service providers or allowing users to perform wireless communication with other users. Such portable terminals are classified into bar-type portable terminals, flip-type portable terminals, and folder-type portable terminals according to their construction.
The bar-type portable terminal has a single housing equipped with data input/output units and signal receiving/transmitting units. In the bar-type portable terminal, the data input unit, such as a keypad, is always exposed, so the bar-type portable terminal may be inadvertently operated. In addition, since a predetermined distance must be ensured between the signal receiving unit and the signal transmitting unit, it is difficult to make the bar-type portable terminal in a compact size.
The flip-type portable terminal includes a body, a flip and a hinge module connecting the flip to the body. The body is equipped with data input/output units and signal receiving/transmitting units. The data input unit, such as a keypad, is positioned on the body and is covered with the flip, so the flip-type portable terminal can be prevented from being inadvertently operated. However, the flip-type portable terminal also requires a predetermined distance between the signal receiving unit and the signal transmitting unit, so it is difficult to make the flip-type portable terminal in a compact size.
The folder-type portable terminal includes a body, a folder and a hinge module rotatably connecting the body to the folder in such a manner that the folder is moved between an opened position and a closed position with respect to the body. Such a folder-type portable terminal may be maintained in a call-wait mode when the folder is in the closed position with respect to the body, thereby preventing the keypad from being inadvertently operated. In a communication mode, the folder is positioned in the opened position with respect to the body so that a sufficient distance may be ensured between the signal receiving unit and the signal transmitting unit. Thus, the folder-type portable terminal can be fabricated in a compact size. For this reason; folder-type portable terminals have been widely used.
In the flip-type portable terminal or the folder-type portable terminal, a flip or a folder is rotatably coupled to a body by means of a hinge module. When the flip or the folder has been rotated with respect to the body by a predetermined angle, the typical hinge module applies a bias force to the flip or the folder in such a manner that the flip or the folder is shifted into a completely opened position with respect to the body, even if external force is not additionally applied to the flip or the folder. In addition, during opening the flip or the folder will return to the closed position with respect to the body by means of the hinge device if the flip or the folder is rotatably moved away from the body by less than the predetermined angle. During closing, once the flip or folder moves past the predetermined angle, the flip or folder will move to the closed position without additional force.
Although various designs have been proposed for the conventional portable terminals, they do not completely satisfy various tastes of consumers. For instance, various kinds of pop-up type portable terminals including a pair of housings, which are slidably coupled with each other, have been proposed. However, such pop-up type portable terminals may generate a metallic noise when one housing is slidably moved with respect to the other housing, thereby annoying the user.